The Reign of Ellen is closing shop. Maybe she’ll be back. Ellen always managed to draw some of the best Lost reviews! Hopefully Margalit will take over as Ellen suggested. Or! Perhaps Ellen will be back by Oct 5.
Category: Of Interest
Those miscellaneous things that just must be published.
Terrorists on American Soil!
Domestic terrorism is prevented by improving the quality of life in America not by bombing Iraq, Iran or anywhere. To have Congress take on the credit card companies that hold so many of the American people hostage would be a good place to begin the Domestic War On Terror. I missed a payment on a closed credit card and they charged me $165 per month in fees and penalties until I got caught up. That should be illegal!
The letter demanded a large sum of money and set a deadline for its delivery.
“The letter did communicate that if the city did not comply, Las Cruces residents will be shot at random,†Lara said.
[Source]
If I had to guess, these extortionists are on their last nickel and feel this is their only option. If people actually start getting shot, I will change that opinion to these extortionists not being extortists but sick cold blooded killers. More information.
More 9/11 cover up?
9/11 hero raided by SWAT.
Major Mike McCormack is a hospital technician and civil air patrol pilot who worked the ground zero site for eight days after the collapse of the twin towers. He is one of the real heroes of 9/11 and was the man who found the American flag that was later displayed as a token of unity atop the rubble.
[Source]
"Numerous firemen were telling me that they heard numerous secondary explosions all over the building – these guys are seasoned firefighting professionals – a lot of them have military backgrounds and they’re not stupid." [Source]
Virgin airlines says no to laptops
Saw this one coming! Think of the money the airlines will save by not having to install wireless access in the planes now.
Dell and Apple notebooks, according to a posted statement on Virgin Atlantic’s site, may only be carried on Virgin Atlantic flights if the battery has been removed and stored in carry-on luggage. Users lucky enough to sit in seats with power supplies may use the laptops via that external source, and Virgin will even provide plug adapters for them. Otherwise, the use of Dell and Apple laptops is prohibited. [Source]
YouTube – sued for videos
Does this mean that the 80s videos on YouTube are doomed?
YouTube representatives have said that they are in talks with record labels about distributing official music videos online. But it’s the long-running trend of unofficial distribution that’s got Universal Music Group chief Doug Morris upset. Morris said at a conference this week that sites like YouTube and MySpace “are copyright infringers and owe us tens of millions of dollars,” according to an Associated Press report. [Source]
I do think Morris is missing the big picture here. Let the videos be freely distributed on YouTube and watch the DVD and record sales. Maybe they simply require an ad at the end of the video promoting a Universal distributor. If they force the removal of the videos, I know I’d have no reason to seek them out but because someone linked to the video, I have a reason to watch it. To watch the video is a reminder that I liked the song. To be reminded that I like the song is an opportunity for me to consider purchasing the song.
Pictures after the Oak Ridge incident
If we messed up in Oak Ridge, these pictures show what Knoxville would look like 20 years later.
On the 26th of April 1986 shortly after midnight, to be precise, at 1:23 GMT, there occurred near the Ukrainian town of Chornobyl a tremendous explosion at a huge nuclear power plant, followed by a gradual meltdown of the reactor No. 4.
…
Nowadays there guided tours are being conducted to this area. These photos are made by George Borman (Pikul) while participating in such a trip.
[Source]
In America, you can tour the Nevada Test Sites.
See also.
Blingo Sends Me to the Movies!
I just won another movie ticket from Blingo! This time someone that signed up as a referral from me won so I won also. Now, I signed up under Cathy so when I win she wins which presents a slight problem in that Blingo limits each household to two prizes per month. On 9/4 I won a ticket and having referred me to Blingo Cathy received a prize also. She claimed an iTunes gift certificate. So technically, that is our two prizes this month. I wonder if I will actually receive this movie ticket. I think 2 prizes per month is far too limiting particularly if you have referred many people.
Since November of 2005, I have won 5 movie tickets from Blingo!
New iPod shuffle now smallest MP3 player
Engadget has a picture of the new iPod shuffle. Nice! And only $79!
Bush’s grandfather finanaced Hilter
Thought I’d post this just because this link will spread like wildfire. Looks like the Bush family fortune may have been established by an American company profitting by backing Nazi Germany.
The Guardian has obtained confirmation from newly discovered files in the US National Archives that a firm of which Prescott Bush was a director was involved with the financial architects of Nazism.
His business dealings, which continued until his company’s assets were seized in 1942 under the Trading with the Enemy Act, has led more than 60 years later to a civil action for damages being brought in Germany against the Bush family by two former slave labourers at Auschwitz…
…new documents, many of which were only declassified last year, show that even after America had entered the war and when there was already significant information about the Nazis’ plans and policies, he worked for and profited from companies closely involved with the very German businesses that financed Hitler’s rise to power. It has also been suggested that the money he made from these dealings helped to establish the Bush family fortune and set up its political dynasty.
More than 60 years after Prescott Bush came briefly under scrutiny at the time of a faraway war, his grandson is facing a different kind of scrutiny but one underpinned by the same perception that, for some people, war can be a profitable business.
[Source]
Reading Is Fundamental
Tonight I finished Chaim Potok’s The Chosen“>The Chosen. Good read. It leaves me asking many questions about Jewry. The story is very moving.
LOST Spoiler
Dharma Exposed. Namaste.
My next business venture! Microwaved people.
Anyone want to help me put a Capsule Inn near every major airport?
A typical Capsule Hotel is composed of two major sections; a public lounge space including bathing, and the other is a private space where the sleeping rooms (capsules) are arranged. The actual sleeping room is a capsule unit made of reinforced plastic and designed in the image of a jet airplane’s cockpit. In the capsule unit, all the required amenities are provided; TV, radio, alarm clock, adjustable lighting… almost everything is provided! Every device is within your reach and you can control everything in a sleeping position.
Unfortunately, men and women sleep on separate floors. Looks like intimacy is out in this intimate environment anyway. I think it would be like having sex in an MRI (yes, there are pictures available). "Sleep at Capsule Inn! It’s like the morgue, just with windows."
FTC Makes $1million
the FTC alleged that Xanga, a rival to the popular MySpace.com, allegedly permitted creation of 1.7 million accounts by users who submitted birthdays indicating they were under 13. Social networking Web site Xanga.com will pay $1 million — the largest penalty ever issued for violations of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act. [Source]
When does that next season of that tv show start?
The futon critic has a list of start dates for our favorite shows! Just last night I was wondering when Boston Legal was starting up again. Now I know, September 19!
The Best Antivirus Software
I have long since given up on Symantec’s Norton Antivirus and McAfee. These guys used to be the top dogs but now add so much bloatware that their efforts to keep your machine clean can greatly degrade performance. I often clean machines of viruses and spyware. I am good and I enjoy it. I usually encourage people to go with Avast or AVG as their antivirus of choice. Ryan at CyberNet Technology News alerts us that Virus.gr has ranked the leading antivirus solutions. Be sure to check out the comments Ryan is receiving. Click More to see the list.
